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Laos-Inspired Meat Salad

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5 from 2 votes
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Resting Time 10 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Yield 4 servings
Category Dinner
Cuisine Laotian, Southeast Asian, Thai

Description

Made with diced cooked beef, lemongrass, ginger and lots of fresh herbs, this Laotian meat salad is an easy to make meal with complex flavors. Serve it with rice and fresh crunchy lettuce leaves for a quick and healthy dinner.

Ingredients

  • 1 medium shallot, thinly sliced
  • 1 (1–1 ½ pound) top sirloin or NY Strip steak
  • Kosher Salt
  • ½ bunch cilantro, roughly chopped
  • ⅓ cup loosely packed fresh mint leaves, roughly chopped
  • 1 heaping tablespoon minced fresh lemongrass (from 1 lemongrass)
  • 1 tablespoon minced jarred kaffir lime leaves
  • 2 teaspoons grated ginger
  • ½–1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
  • 2 teaspoons fish sauce (or Padaek)
  • ½ teaspoon anchovy paste (or Padaek)
  • 1 lime, juiced
  • 2 tablespoons toasted rice powder, optional
  • 1–2 thai chiles, sliced, optional

For Serving

  • Romaine heart leaves, iceberg lettuce or bibb lettuce
  • Cooked jasmine rice, seasoned with toasted sesame oil, sesame seeds and salt

Instructions

  • Thinly slice 1 shallot then add to a bowl and cover with cold water; set aside.
  • Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes.
  • Pat steak dry then season generously with salt (at least 1 teaspoon).
  • Add steak to skillet and cook, without touching, until steak naturally releases from pan and is golden brown, about 4 minutes, flip and continue to cook until golden brown on second side and an instant-reader thermometer registers 125ºF for medium-rare, 135ºF for medium, or 145ºF for well done.
  • Transfer steak to a plate, tent loosely with foil and let rest 10 minutes.
  • Transfer steak to a cutting board and cut into thin strips, against the grain. Cut strips into a small dice; transfer diced steak to a large mixing bowl.
  • Drain shallot and add to bowl with steak along with ½ bunch chopped cilantro, ⅓ cup chopped mint, 1 tablespoons minced lemongrass, 1 tablespoon minced kaffir leaves, 2 teaspoons grated ginger, and ½ teaspoon pepper flakes.
  • Whisk together 2 teaspoon fish sauce and ½ teaspoon anchovy paste in a small bowl. Add fish sauce mixture and juice of 1 lime juice to salad; toss to combine. Stir in 1 tablespoon toasted rice powder, if using. Season to taste with additional salt, pepper flakes and lime juice.
  • Transfer salad to a large serving bowl or platter and top with sliced chiles, if using. Serve with sesame rice and large lettuce leaves.

Equipment

cast-iron skillet
large mixing bowl

Notes

Storage: store any leftovers in a glass airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Gently reheat on the stovetop before serving. 
Instead of galangal, which I found to be hard to find, I’m using a combination of ginger and lemongrass. These two ingredients are a bit more aromatic but do a nice job of hitting the spicy and citrusy notes of galangal. The only flavors missing from these two ingredients that galagal would add is some earthiness and pepperiness. If you can find galangal, use that instead!
Instead of fresh or dried kaffir lime leaves I like to use jarred kaffir lime leaves—this way they're always recipe to use. You can use dried kaffir lime leaves, just be sure to hydrate them in hot water for a few minutes before using.
Instead of padaek, which is a fermented fish sauce, I’m using a combination of fish sauce and anchovy paste. Together, this combination adds a similar flavor to the Laos meat salad and it's fairly likely you already have one or the other on hand.
Traditionally, Lao Meat Salad uses toasted rice powder which adds a nutty flavor and slightly creamy texture. You can certainly add it (start with a tablespoon) but I’ve chosen to leave it out of this recipe for ease.

Nutrition

Serving: 1/4 recipeCalories: 265kcalCarbohydrates: 6gProtein: 23gFat: 24gSaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 102mgSodium: 1248mgFiber: 2gSugar: 3g
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